Sotheby’s will stage an important exhibition from September 12-14 at Building 19, Katara Cultural Village, featuring a selection of 24 highlights from the forthcoming ‘Arts of the Islamic World’ sale – exquisite objects exemplifying the broad artistic traditions of the Muslim world, including ceramics, metalwork, manuscripts, jewellery, weapons and paintings.
The selection that will be on view in Doha has been chosen from a total of 281 objects to be offered for sale in Sotheby’s ‘Arts of the Islamic World’ and ‘Art of Imperial India’ sales in London. The pieces that will be on display in Doha represent the very best of what will be sold on October 9 at Sotheby’s New Bond Street in London, and provide fascinating insights into Muslim history and culture, encompassing almost 1,400 years of every kind of decorative art produced in lands under Islamic patronage from Spain to India. These highlights will be the focus of a series of accompanying gallery tours at Building 19, Katara Cultural Village, which will be led by Edward Gibbs, Chairman and Head of Sotheby’s Middle East Department. These tours will be held each evening at 8pm and are open to all.
Edward Gibbs, Chairman and Head of Sotheby’s Middle East Department, said: “We are delighted to follow our successful sale of Contemporary Art in Doha this April with an exhibition of art objects of superb quality and importance from our forthcoming ‘Arts of the Islamic World’ sale in London. We have chosen a range of items that is representative of the sale in its entirety, including pieces that have an immediate relevance to the audience in Doha and those visiting the exhibition from the wider region. Doha is an ideal audience as it is home to one of the world’s outstanding collections housed in the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA), and Sotheby’s is proud of its relationship with Doha which spans over two decades.”
A particularly noteworthy inclusion in the ‘Arts of the Islamic World’ exhibition in Doha is The Fall of Constantinople, an extremely rare and important late fifteenth/early sixteenth century Italian oil painting of the ancient city of Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul) estimated at £180,000-220,000. This is probably the earliest known artistic depiction of Constantinople showing the city falling to the Ottoman army under Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror.
The painting is of the same period and context as the portrait of Mehmet Fatih (‘The Conqueror’), by the School of Gentile Bellini, in the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA), Doha.
Further highlights on view at the exhibition will include a pair of Ottoman wooden roundels with the names of two of the Righteous Caliphs ‘Abu Bakr’ and ‘Umar’ carved in gold taliq calligraphy, dating from the first half of the 19th century and estimated at £20,000-30,000.
Alongside these is a rare and beautiful large-scale Quran copied by the famous calligrapher Ahmed Nayrizi, with later illumination added for the Shah of Iran, Fath ‘Ali Shah, as well as a portrait of Rustam Khan Zand, signed by Muhammad Sadiq, Zand, Shiraz, circa 1779 (£300,000 - £500,000), an exquisite illustrated leaf ‘Four Young Scholars in Discussion’ signed by Muhammad Murad Samarqandi, Persia, Safavid, Bukhara, early 17th century (£400,000-600,000) and some fine examples of Iznik pottery and Islamic manuscripts, among other varied works of art.
In addition to the ‘Arts of the Islamic World’ sale, Sotheby’s will be holding a dedicated auction of Indian art in London entitled ‘Art of Imperial India’ on October 9. The auction will offer collectors high-quality and beautiful paintings, as well as objects, textiles, weaponry and luxurious works of art from the courts of the Indian subcontinent. Highlights of the ‘Art of Imperial India’ sale that will be on view in Doha will include a solid gold diamond-set enamelled gold tray and casket (pandan) dating from the 18th century and valued at £200,000-300,000. Items such as this are extremely rare outside museums, yet, as is often the case with precious objects, they are often carefully preserved in very good condition, and this is absolutely pristine.
Other objects in the ‘Art of Imperial India’ sale include a gold and enamelled diamond-set sarpech (turban brooch) valued at £35,000-45,000; a Mughal jade, gold and gem-set dagger estimated at £20,000-25,000; and an impressive 18th-century sword with a tiger-head pommel captured from Tipu Sultan’s fortress at Seringapatam, Mysore, in 1799, which is estimated at £80,000-120,000.The Peninsula
